Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 15, 2026

Exmes

Exmes is a former commune in the Orne department in north-western France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Gouffern en Auge. It was the seat of the county of Hiémois, granted before his death in 1027 by Richard II, Duke of Normandy, to his younger son, Robert, who eventually succeeded as Duke of Normandy. In 1136, Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Pembroke, led an expedition against Exmes and burned parts of the town, including the church of Notre Dame.

Last revised
Jun 15, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
249 w
Citations
2
Source
Exmes
Map
Location of Exmes
Exmes
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Exmes
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Coordinates: 48°45′40″N 0°10′50″E / 48.7611°N 0.1806°E / 48.7611; 0.1806
CountryFrance
RegionNormandy
DepartmentOrne
ArrondissementArgentan
CantonArgentan-2
CommuneGouffern en Auge
Area
1
10.43 km2 (4.03 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)1
268
 • Density25.7/km2 (66.6/sq mi)
DemonymHiémois
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal code
61310
Elevation145–268 m (476–879 ft)
(avg. 317 m or 1,040 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Exmes (French pronunciation: [ɛm]) is a former commune in the Orne department in north-western France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Gouffern en Auge.2 It was the seat of the county of Hiémois (French: Comté d'Hiémois), granted before his death in 1027 by Richard II, Duke of Normandy, to his younger son, Robert, who eventually succeeded as Duke of Normandy. In 1136, Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Pembroke, led an expedition against Exmes and burned parts of the town, including the church of Notre Dame.

Herbert de Losinga, Bishop of Norwich (c. 1095–1119), was born in Exmes as well was François Le Prévost d'Exmes (1729–1793), an 18th-century playwright.

Toponymy

Attested apparently first from Merovingian times, the name is of Celtic origin, with many parallels in other placenames and words.

Heraldry

Arms of Exmes
Arms of Exmes source ↗
The arms of Exmes are blazoned :
Azure, 2 greyhounds passant argent.



See also

See also

References

References

  1. "Populations de référence 2022" [Reference populations 2022] (PDF) (in French). INSEE. December 2024.
  2. Arrêté préfectoral 6 October 2016 (in French)